


THE GREEN BEAD

by Neminiwrites



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-16 00:27:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29073300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Neminiwrites/pseuds/Neminiwrites
Summary: Severus and Hermione were happily married.. Until someone wanted revenge.Please let me know what you think :o) I love comments and KudosThanks to Qoheleth for the correct latin translation
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Severus Snape
Kudos: 47





	THE GREEN BEAD

THE GREEN BEAD

Severus stood on a stool trying to reach the back of the dusty top shelf. He had been through all the rest of the books in this god forsaken, hole in the wall book shop. It was only by accident he had found it tucked away down an alley he had used to get to the next shop. He was searching the entire city of Cairo for the tome he needed. The one that would tell him how to cure his beautiful wife Hermione of the curse that had struck her. He could not discover who had cast it or why, but since that horrible day in Diagon alley she was on borrowed time.

It was a day like any other. They had happily left his apothecary shop arm in arm, looking forward to a hot meal and the comforts of home, when there was a bright flash and she suddenly collapsed next to him. She dropped to the snow with her eyes open and her body unmoving. For a horrible split second he was transported back to his days as a death eater, when life was cheap and could end at any moment. He instinctively drew his wand and fired back, but there was no one there. Severus quickly placed two fingers at her throat, expecting the worst. To his utter joy and amazement she was still alive. Hermione closed her eyes and groaned. 

“It’s going to be all right my love, just stay with me.” He spoke softly to her as his wand ran the diagnostic charm. The tenderness of his voice did not express the panic in his heart. The diagnostic did not tell him what the curse had done to her. Severus gently picked her up and cradled her to his chest, looking both ways before standing. He returned to the apothecary and laid her gently on the counter. She was cold from laying in the snow and he added a charm to soften the counter and warm her.

“Severus?” Hermione’s voice was so soft he almost missed it. “I’m here.” He took her hand in his and watched as some of the color and warmth returned to her face. “What happened?”, she tried to sit up.

“Shhhh, don’t move love. You were hit by a curse from behind. I’m still trying to figure out what it was. How do you feel?”

“Strange. Like…I can’t describe it. Like I’m made of silly putty. Weak and boneless and sleepy.”

“Are you in any pain or discomfort?” His mind was racing, trying to go through every curse he knew to narrow it down.

“No. It doesn’t hurt, except maybe my knee where I fell hurts a little.”

Severus looked to her knee. A small tear in the fabric was obvious but no blood. He ripped it open. There was a wide gash in her flesh that should have been extremely painful and bleeding like mad, but it wasn’t. This was more than he could handle and he needed to get her to St Mungos immediately. The longer a curse is active the harder it is to counter or contain.

“Hermione, we need to get you to St Mungos. Can you put your arms around my neck?” She tried to lift her arms, but they fell back to the counter. The strain of trying showed on her face. “I’m sorry. They feel like they’re made of lead.” Severus grabbed her gently about the waist and held her tight as they apparated.

St Mungos had a trauma team over them before he could even yell for help. Hermione was placed on a gurney and whisked away. She was through the doors to the exam room and out of sight when the shock and full force of what had happened hit him. The clock on the wall was annoyingly loud and he felt sick. It had only been ten minutes since she had been struck, but it seemed like hours. “Professor Snape?”

He was staring sightless down the hall when a voice made him focus on it’s owner. The young man who stood before him was familiar. Jed Firestone had been in his class the last year he had taught at Hogwarts five years ago. The bright blue eyes that stared at him with concern, were a contrast to the dark brown messy hair and freckles that peppered the pale round face. A good student, he was one of the few who didn’t make his life a misery teaching. “Professor Snape, we need you to tell us what happened.” 

Severus spoke as he walked to the doors of the exam room. Reliving the incident for the medic trying to remember every detail. He looked through the door window. She was responding to their questions, but was so pale. “I’m sorry professor you can’t go in there.” The medic could see the professor was not listening to him, so he held his arm and tried to pull him away. He might as well have been trying to pull a troll with a spider web.

The sound of boots on the marble floor brought Severus to attention. The aurors had arrived to take his statement. The medic had sent for them as soon as he was told of the curse. They stopped in front of him and Severus looked into the vivid green eyes of his one-time burden. “Hello Severus.”, was said with concern. “Mr. Potter.” he replied stonily “How’s she doing?” “As well as can be expected for being ambushed in an alley.” The harshness of his tone was born from his worry. He looked at Harry softly with pain in his eyes.

“They haven’t told me anything yet.”

Suddenly the doors to the exam room burst open as they wheeled Hermione out and down the hall to a more permanent room. The lead doctor came out to talk with her husband. “I’m sorry Mr. Snape, I don’t have good news. We are still unsure of which curse was used and it is difficult to treat what you’ve never seen before. We have her in stasis. It’s slowing the progress of the hellish thing, but not stopping it. Her blood is literally congealing in her body, that is why the gash on her knee didn’t bleed. If we can’t stop it, she will die.” 

The horror on Harry’s face wasn’t a fraction of what Severus was feeling. “How long?” he whispered. “Unknown.”, the doctor replied, “We can keep her alive with cold and blood replenishers for a week, maybe ten days.” Medic Firestone was down the hall and gestured to the doctor, “Excuse me.”

Severus grabbed Harry but the front of his robes. “You’ve got to find out who did this!” Harry looked up into the red rimmed desperate eyes of his friend. “I Know!!” he yelled back, pushing the man off of him. Severus staggered back and took a deep breath trembling with rage. There was only one thing more terrifying than Snape yelling, and that was Snapes quiet, icy, controlled tone. “You’ve got to find him, and when we’re through, dig a grave. Not even dementors could protect him.” 

Harry was sympathetic but hardened. “I didn’t hear that Severus. Remember I am the law.” Harry held out an empty vial. “Give me your memory so we can get started.” 

It was easy to produce the tears needed for the memory transfer. In fact it was hard for Severus to stop, and when he handed the vial to him he said quietly, “Please Harry. She is my life.” Harry looked at the vial with the whisps of memory dancing in it. Severus had turned and strode down the hall, his cloak billowing behind him, into Hermione’s room.  
Harry looked at his two lieutenants, “Let’s go, I think I know where to start.”

Severus entered Hermione’s room. She was propped up against the pillows at the head of the bed in a hospital gown. Her eyes were closed on her pale face and her hands rested above the blankets. He sat in the chair next to her bed and grasped her hand. It was so cold, part of her treatment. A wave of his wand closed and warded the door. Only then did he allow himself to breakdown. 

The tears came first and then a silent scream of agony as he thought about losing her. Severus laid his head in her lap and put his arms around her. “Please don’t leave me my love.” Time passed slowly and he did not allow his feelings long to vent before he sat up and kissed her. A grim determined look on his face. “I could stay here and hold your hand and watch you die, or I could go out there and try to find out what can be done. Forgive me my love if you wake and find me gone, but I can’t stay and do nothing.”

He stood and opened the door. Medic Firestone was waiting outside. He had seen Snape go in and gave him time to say good bye. No one here had much hope of recovery. “You’re leaving.” It was a statement not a question. “I thought you would.” He looked sadly into the haunted face of his old potions master. “There is only one clue we have been able to glean. It’s working more like a poison than a curse, or perhaps both. We found a puncture mark on her back and it seems to be spreading from there. All attempts to analyze the poison have failed, except that it is a combination of plant alkali and scorpion venom. We tried to give her an antidote for the venom, but it didn’t change her condition.” “Thank you Jed. I will be sending my patronis to you several times a day. Keep me apprised of any progress.”

That was six days ago and time was running out. He had taken a sample of the poison from the hospital lab to analyze himself. Working non stop he managed to identify the plants. Rabil, glutton thistle root, black henna, and cyanide. All plants common to Egypt. Combined with the scorpion venom it made for a very toxic brew. Add to that the curse that had propelled it and it would be lethal at any dose. He had communicated his findings to St Mungos and they had begun a course of treatment which might buy him a few more days, but her body was taking a hell of a beating and she wouldn’t last much longer.

The shelf he had been prodding finally paid off as his fingers curled around the thick dry spine of an ancient book. When he pulled it out, wiped off the cobwebs and looked at the cover, a faint glimmer of hope grabbed his gut. Ancient Egyptian Poisons, Their Uses and Cures. Not the book he was looking for, but certainly helpful, and as close as he had gotten to it.

The book was very very old, and he handled it gingerly least the pages turn to dust in his hand. It was plain that the leather cover had been added sometime after the book was created. The pages were papyrus and the lettering was in Hieratic script. A wave of his wand translated the ancient writing.

‘The poisons contained herein are from the darkness of time. There are few antidotes. Beware.’

Luckily there was a cross reference. He skimmed all poisons using scorpion venom with plant based poisons. There was one that matched. It was called Mors Sanguine Pulvereo. The Blood Dust Death. There was an antidote, but the ingredients were nothing he had ever heard of.

Severus purchased the book and asked for the nearest apothecary. He was told the largest one was across town, but the oldest one was just a few blocks away. He gave the store owner a little extra for the information and ran to the oldest. The smell of ingredients was so intoxicating when he entered it was difficult to breathe. If he hadn’t been on such a vital mission he could have stayed there for days.

The young clerk at the counter greeted him. Severus was pleased that he spoke English. “Young man I have need of some ingredients for an antidote to a rare poison. It is a matter of life and death. Can you help me?” The young man was startled by the look in Severus’ eyes. “Yes sir, I’m sure we can. One moment please.” He went through a beaded curtain and it seemed to take forever before he returned with a withered old man on his arm. 

“Sir this is my great grandfather. There is nothing that he doesn’t know about our inventory. He doesn’t speak English, but I can interpret. What ingredients do you need?” Severus opened the book and began to read them off. The old man understood immediately what Severus needed and relayed the information to the young man, who quickly gathered what they had. The old man was blind and crippled, but his mind was as sharp as the day he opened this store.

He had gathered almost everything, one ingredient was missing. “I’m sorry sir. We have everything but the mummy flesh. They are considered antiquities and there is a high penalty to be caught with such things in the store. The man said it loud and over Severus’ shoulder. As if trying to communicate some message to the street. Severus was highly skeptical that a shop such as this, in the middle of Cairo, did not have mummy’s flesh. 

“Please. There must be some exception. My wife is dying. There’s not much time.” The man behind the counter kept talking loudly over Severus’ shoulder, as he pulled out a bag from under the counter. “I’m sorry sir, there are no exceptions. It would be worth more than I can say to fulfil your request. You must take what you have and leave immediately.” He stuffed the bag and the rest of the ingredients in a box and pushed them at Severus winking quickly.

Severus’ lips twitched upwards as he caught on. He spoke quite loudly himself, “I will do my best with what you have given me. Thank You. How much do I owe?” The man smiled and nodded his head. “One hundred and fifty pounds.” Severus left three hundred on the counter and turned to leave. Suddenly the old man stood and started to speak in a rant, waving his hands above him. “Wait sir!”

The old man continued to speak. “He says, There is very dark magic around you. If you are being pursued by such evil you will not survive without this.” The old man pulled a clear green bead from his pocket and placed it on the counter. The young man grabbed it and argued with the old man in Egyption. Severus did not understand. Finally the old man banged his staff against the floor and had his way. The young man gave Severus the bead. As he did so he grabbed his arm. “This bead had been in my family for uncounted generations. He has only loaned it to you. Wear it about your neck. If you become free of this evil send it back… Please.”

Severus smiled. “I will. You have my word.” He found the first dark alley he could and after a series of apparitions arrived at his lab. He sent his patronis to Medic Firestone again to check on Hermione. It returned a short time later. “She is growing very weak professor. You must come now.” The antidote was almost ready. It was a race against time.  
He watched as it turned the correct color in the caldron. Quickly casting a cooling charm, put it in a vial and got to St Mungoes.

Medic Firestone met him at the entrance. “I’m sorry professor, she’s gone.” 

Severus grabbed him by the collar, “WHEN!” “Just now, I’m so sorry.”

Severus would not believe it. He pushed the medic aside and ran to her room. Her body lay flat, covered with a sheet. “no.” He said so quietly, so pitifully. He approached her and removed the sheet from her face. She was cold and her lips were pale and blue. There seemed to be a shadow on her face. He held the vial to her lips and poured. Closing her mouth he rubbed her neck to move the mixture down her throat. When he pulled back there was no response. He threw himself upon her, holding her shoulders, and wept. “No my love. Don’t leave me. You must try. Please Hermione. Please try.”

Auror Harry Potter came in. His eyes red rimmed from sorrow after talking to the medic. 

“We got him Severus. I poured the veritas serum down his evil throat myself. He said the poison would kill her slowly just as his wife had died, slowly, raped and cut to pieces by death eaters. You were the only one of them he could get to, and so Hermione became a target. He didn’t know the antidote. The only spell he used was a propellant to make sure the barb hit her and went deep.”

“Leave me alone with her Harry. Please.” Harry nodded and left the room after touching her hand gently. 

Severus stood and pulled the wisps of hair on her face away. Her lovely amber eyes were closed forever now. He felt nothing as he looked at her. A completely empty shell, no heart, no soul, no reason to go on. There was a second vial in his pocket. Another deadly poison that would be quick and painless. “Wait for me Hermione. I’m coming.” He took off the top and opened his lips to receive it, when the green bead around his neck began to glow brightly.

He stopped as the green light filled the room. It began to spin and waiver as it concentrated into an image. When it was done, there before him was a beautiful woman dressed in shear white pleated linen. Her sculpted womans body shown through clearly. Long black hair in tiny braids held a golden circlet on her head, with a scorpion that moved and clicked it’s claws. “Who are you?” was all Snape could say. She smiled but said nothing to him. She came to his side of the bed, took his hand and the vial. It smashed against the floor as she dropped it. “Fear not Severus. She has not yet begun her journey to the afterlife.” The woman leaned over the body and blew her warm breath upon Hermione’s cold lips. “Return Hermione. You are too well loved to be cut down this way.”

The woman stood and walked back around the bed. Her body burst with the green light. It was so bright that Severus was blinded by it. When it finally dissipated, he could see she was gone. The sound of sheets moving took his attention. 

Hermione was sitting upright in her bed looking at him. “Severus.” She put her hand to his cheek. “I had the strangest dream. I was in an Egyptian tomb and the paintings on the walls came to life and spoke to me. We talked for a long time but I don’t remember what was said. At the end, a beautiful woman with a scorpion on her head said she was Isis and her familiar had been misused to cause me great harm. She said she was sorry and that I would be ok. What does it mean?”

Severus couldn’t hear a word she said. He could only see that she was alive. He pulled her tight into his arms, tears falling freely down his face. He didn't care how. “I love you Hermione. Let’s go home.”

The End


End file.
